Since the dawn of athletic competition, athletes have searched for athletic training devices which would efficiently and effectively prepare the athlete for the rigors of competition. Accordingly, it is well known in the sport of hockey, and in other sports such as baseball, tennis and golf, that the addition of a detachable weight to athletic equipment, during athletic training, effectively conditions appropriate muscle groups of the athlete thereby enhancing the athlete's strength, coordination and reflexes. However, and in order for an athlete to be sufficiently prepared for a forthcoming season of competition, an athlete must, in addition to performing strength training, i.e. weight lifting and training with weighted athletic equipment, also spend countless hours performing endurance training, that is, specifically, aerobic and anaerobic training. In this regard, it should be understood that aerobic training conditions an athlete's heart and lungs for long periods of physical stress, and anaerobic training conditions an athlete's body for short bursts of maximum energy alternating with brief periods of recovery.
In general, aerobic training is a necessary off-season activity for an athlete because it enables the athlete to achieve a high level of heart-lung efficiency which serves as a foundation for the athlete's anaerobic conditioning that comprises much of an athlete's pre-season workouts. For example, and in the course of ice hockey training, aerobic training is a necessary off-season activity because such aerobic training serves as a foundation for an ice hockey player's anaerobic conditioning which traditionally occurs three to four weeks prior to scheduled seasonal on-ice hockey practice.
Running has traditionally been a popular method for achieving necessary off-season aerobic conditioning. However, and in such sports as ice hockey, skating on Rollerblades.RTM. is also an excellent method for achieving the necessary off-season aerobic fitness. As should be understood, RolIerbIades.RTM. are a pair of skate-like boots which have a plurality of in-line wheels which comprise a single "blade" of wheels which are attached to each boot. Rollerblades.RTM. is a registered trademark of Rollerblade Inc. of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
It is known to ice hockey players that achieving aerobic fitness by skating on Rollerblades.RTM. produces less stress on their knees and feet as compared to the stress produced on the knees and feet as a consequence of running. Further, it is known to ice hockey players that skating on Rollerblades.RTM. simulates athletic movements that traditionally occur during the course of an ice hockey game, and that such off-season aerobic training on Rollerblades.RTM. could conceivably be integrated with ice hockey stick handling practice.
As earlier discussed, the prior art is replete with athletic training devices which suggest the use of weighted members which are detachably fixed to the shaft of an athletic implement for the purpose of adding weight to the athletic implement thereby providing strength training for appropriate muscle groups of the athlete. For example, one prior art device includes a weighted box-like member which is releasably fixed to the shaft of an ice hockey stick for the purpose of conditioning the ice hockey player's appropriate muscle groups during on-ice hockey practice. Other prior art athletic training devices suggest the use of a detachable U-shaped weight, the internal shape of which is substantially equal to the cross sectional shape of the athletic implement. Such U-shaped weights when used in the sport of ice hockey, for example, would have an internal shape substantially equal to the cross sectional configuration of the shaft of an ice hockey stick.
While the prior art athletic training devices have operated with some degree of success, the devices do, however, suffer from a multiplicity of drawbacks which have detracted from their usefulness. For example, there exists a significant problem in the aforementioned prior art weighted athletic training devices inasmuch as the prior art athletic training devices do not permit an ice hockey player to effectively integrate off-season aerobic training and pre-season anaerobic training with strength training and ice hockey stick handling practice because the ice hockey player's ice hockey stick becomes irreparably damaged. More specifically, off-season aerobic training and pre-season anaerobic training for the ice hockey player is typically accomplished by running on a hardened, earthen surface, or by skating with Rollerblades.RTM. on a hardened, paved surface. Accordingly, any use of an ice hockey stick with an attached prior art weighted training devices during such aerobic/anaerobic training on such hardened, abrasive surfaces, usually, severely damages the blade end of the ice hockey stick, thus rendering it unserviceable. For example, should the ice hockey player dribble a hockey puck while running on a hardened, un-iced, earthen surface, or dribble a hockey puck while skating with Rollerblades.RTM. on an un-iced, paved surface, severe structural damage would occur to the blade end of the ice hockey stick due to constant frictional contact of the blade end of the ice hockey stick with the abrasive, un-iced, earthen surface.
Still another significant problem with the prior art weighted devices results from characteristics inherent in their design. Specifically, the prior art devices have not been operable to rollingly engage the surface of the earth thereby permitting an athlete to realistically emulate the stick handling techniques fundamental to competitive hockey with the attendant result that off season hockey players do not improve as significantly in their performance as might otherwise be expected.
Therefore, it has long been known that it would be desirable to have an athletic training device which would allow an athlete to integrate off-season aerobic training and preseason anaerobic training with strength training, while simultaneously allowing the athlete to emulate the movement of the athletic device in a fashion customary to the sport for which the device is used without damaging the athletic device by frictional engagement with the surface of the earth.